The Paraguayan Football Association ( ; APF; ) is the governing body of football in Paraguay. It organizes the Paraguayan football league, including futsal and beach soccer, as well as and the Paraguay national football team. It is based in the city of Luque, near the capital city, Asunción. Football is the most popular sport in Paraguay.
History In the late 1890s William Paats brought soccer to Paraguay, when it was then played at an Asunción teacher's college. Escuela Normal de Maestros.
On June 18, 1906, the representatives of the five existing football teams in Paraguay at that time (Olimpia, Guaraní, Libertad, General Díaz, and Nacional) met to establish the Paraguayan Football League, named Liga Paraguaya de Football Association. The first match was played on a Sunday, July 8, 1906. Adolfo Riquelme, who was a well known Paraguayan journalist, was the organization's first president.
In 1921, during the presidency of Enrique Pinho, the Paraguayan Football League joined the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL). In 1925 it became a member of FIFA. In 1941 it changed its name to Liga Paraguaya de Football and in 1957 the name was Hispanicized as Liga Paraguaya de Fútbol.
On December 3, 1998, its name was changed to its current denomination, Asociación Paraguaya de Fútbol, which coincidentally is one of the names that had been adopted by a dissident football association that brought together some teams which would later join the League, and which organized championships between 1911 and 1917.
In 2016, APF appointed Robert Harrison, the former head of Club Nacional, as president. Harrison succeeded Alejandro Domínguez, who resigned to run for president of CONMEBOL, after Juan Ángel Napout stepped down from that role in December 2015. In 2019, APF hired Argentinian Eduardo Berizzo as manager of Paraguay's national men's team.
Paraguay have not previously hosted the FIFA World Cup. In August 2022, APF joined up with the football associations of Argentina, Uruguay and Chile to jointly bid to host the World Cup in 2030.
Institutional Succession From its foundation in 1906 until it adopted its final name in 1998, the APF followed the following institutional trajectory: Founded: 18 June 1906Liga Paraguaya de Football Association (LPFA) Affiliation to the Conmebol: 1921The Paraguayan Football League becomes a member of the South American Football Confederation, during the presidency of Enrique Pinho. Affiliation to FIFA: 1925The LPF joins the Member Associations of the International Federation of Association Football. Change of name: 1941Paraguayan Football League LPF Castellanisation: 1957Paraguayan Football League LPF Change of name: December 1998Paraguayan Football Association APF
Honours
Copa América champions 1953, 1979 Olympic Games silver medal (Athens 2004) FIFA World Cup 8 participations 1930, 1950, 1958, 1986, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2010
The Paraguay national team appeared in the World Cup finals eight times, reaching the quarter-finals in the world FIFA event in South Africa (2010), losing to the eventual tournament victor, a Spanish team.
The Club Olimpia has been indomitable: 38 Paraguayan championship titles; 3 in the Copa Libertadores the continental South American soccer tournament (1979, 1990, 2002); and Intercontinental cup.
Leadership and staff
Presidents Source:
Liga Paraguaya de Football Association Name Period Dr. Adolfo Riquelme 1906–1908 Dr. Eusebio Ayala 1908–1909 Don William Paats 1909–1910 Don Emilio Mantera 1910–1910 Don Junio Quinto Godoi 1910–1911 Don Alejandro Gatti 1911–1913 Dr. Enrique L. Pinho 1913–1923 Dr. Juan Manuel Álvarez 1923–1924 Dr. Esteban Semidei 1924–1926 Prof. Dr. Adriano Irala 1926–1928 Don Manuel Bedoya 1928–1931 Don Juan Pablo Gorostiaga 1931–1932 Dr. Ignacio L. Parra 1932–1932 Dr. Francisco Esculies 1935–1936 Don Ramón T. Cartes 1936–1937 Don Manuel Galiano 1937–1938 Dr. Juan Arturo Lavigne 1939–1940 Cnel. Sampson Harrison 1940–1940
Liga Paraguaya de Football Name Period Dr. Manuel Bedoya 1941–1941 Dr. Julio César Airaldi 1942–1944 Dr. Crispín Insaurralde 1944–1945 Don Fulgencio R. Moreno 1945–1946 Don Oscar Pinho Insfrán 1946–1947 Dr. Lorenzo N. Livieres 1947–1948 Clte. Ramón Martino 1948–1948 Dr. Blas A. Dos Santos 1948–1950 Don Lidio Quevedo 1950–1951 Dr. Blas A. Dos Santos 1951–1952 Dr. Alfonso Capurro 1952–1954 Don Lidio Quevedo 1954–1955 Dr. Raimundo Paniagua 1955–1956 Dr. Alfonso Capurro 1956–1957
Liga Paraguaya de Fútbol Name Period Dr. Pedro Recalde 1957–1957 Dr. Ernesto Gavilán 1958–1959 Dr. Hassel Aguilar Sosa 1959–1960 Dr. Tulio Manuel Quiroz 1960–1961 Dr. Manuel Duarte Pallarés 1961–1963 Dr. Anastacio Mendoza Sánchez 1963–1965 Dr. Jerónimo Angulo Gastón 1965–1967 Cnel. Raúl Fernández 1967–1968 Don Juan Antonio Sosa Gautier 1969–1970 Dr. Nicolás Leoz 1971–1972 Don Humberto Domínguez Dibb 1973–1976 Don Oscar Barchini 1977–1979 Dr. Nicolás Leoz 1979–1984 Don Jesús Manuel Pallarés 1985–1994 Esc. Oscar J. Harrison 1994–1998
Asociación Paraguaya de Fútbol Name Period Esc. Oscar J. Harrison 1998–2007 Lic. Juan Ángel Napout 2007–2014 Lic. Alejandro Domínguez 2014–2016 Lic. Ramón González Daher 2016 Lic. Robert Harrison 2016–Present
Association staff (2022)
NamePosition Robert HarrisonPresident Carlos SosaVice President Javier Díaz de Vivar2nd Vice President Luis KanonnikoffGeneral Secretary Hugo KurokiTreasurer Douglas Martínez Technical Director Gustavo AlfaroTeam Coach (Men's) Carlos BonaTeam Coach (Women's) Fernando OrtizMedia/Communications Manager Jose Luis AlderFutsal Coordinator Cynthia Franco Eber AquinoReferee Coordinator
Paraguayan football league system
The football in Paraguay has four levels in men's tournaments (five in the interior of the country) and one division in women's tournaments. The Paraguayan Football Association with an affiliated association called the Interior Football Union (UFI) –which consists of 17 federations, one for each department of the country, excluding the city of Asunción-, organizes the different championships.
The most popular football teams in Paraguay are Olimpia, Cerro Porteño, Guaraní, Libertad and Nacional. All of them are from Asunción.
The Supercopa Paraguay is a national cup played since 2021. It is single match, on a neutral field that faces the champion of Primera División and the champion of Copa Paraguay, a competition created in 2018 with teams of all categories, including the federations that belong to UFI.
There is also a category for the reserve of the football teams called Categoría Reserva and then the formative divisions from 14 to 19 years. The women's division also has a U-18 category.
Since 2024 there are four women's tournaments: the one division league –called Campeonato Anual FEM–, Copa EFE, Copa Paraguay FEM and Supercopa FEM.
Regarding futsal, it is organized in four categories: a premium league, the Honor Category, Primera and Intermedia. There is also a category for women.
The APF also organizes two beach soccer championships, the Tournament of Stars and the Women's Beach Soccer Tournament.
Controversy The freedom of players to be contractually released and transfer between clubs and negotiate contracts (commonly called a "buyout clause") has been controversial, and subject to both scholarly inquiry and legal proceedings.
Current sponsorships
Shell Puma Coca-Cola Rexona Volkswagen DIESA Pechugon Tokyo Electrodomésticos Pilsen Royal Viajes Bambi Assist Card NSA Koala Aposta.la Rexona Hellmann's Omo Mostaza Marley Coffee Chortitzer Hydrate AVA Yerba Mate Kurupi Glacial Damattween 23sports Aesa
Previous sponsorships
AET Claro Nevado Panini Eme Super Spuma LATAM Airlines Paraguay Inesfly Asepasa Seguros Farmacenter Urba Inmobiliaria Schneider Lacteos Trebol CTI Móvil Fiat Pulp Grupo Luminotecnia Prestige Tigo Telecel Leopard Amanecer Pinturas McDonald's SportCesped
See also Copa Paraguay Paraguayan Primera División Paraguay national football team Football in Paraguay Paraguayan Footballer of the Year Paraguay women's national football team Paraguayan Tercera División Sport in Paraguay Estadio Defensores del Chaco 2019 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Juan Ángel Napout Juan Escobar (Paraguayan footballer) Paraguay women's national under-20 football team Robert Harrison
References
Further reading
External links
Paraguay – FIFA profile (archived 2 June 2007)